Wednesday, June 28, 2006

To all my readers abroad, I'll explain how we celebrate "Independence Day", which generally not only involves rapper Will "Fresh Prince" Smith battling space invaders, but copius consumption of cola nut based beverages & a Belgian orginated favorite we renamed " freedom fries". Plus in some small town or city a few kids will usually blow off some fingers playing with patriotic firecrackers made in China. that's what I'm talking about !

Too bad at this critical time, the darn traitors on the Supreme Court can't see eye to eye with the righteous freedom frying vibes that created G.W & friend's popular & most fabulous Caribbean resort, Guantanamo...

Apparently the court actually voted 5-3 against the idea that our secret system of :"whatever & whenever we say say so" military tribunals is an adequate way to gauge and punish an "enemy combatant". It appears the Bush admin & Pentagon lawyer lackeys may now have to take time out of their busy schedules and actually charge these guys being held for mysterious reasons.

Could be the last chance for America to rock our offshore gulag au go go ?

Do I confess that we're blessed, yes, and yet we're countin our daysTry to give it my best guess, and pray for somethin to sayIt's a battle cry, a tear in the eye, a suffer insideIt's a voice in the night, callin' out traitor

Let the accounting begin, friend, and we'll find out where we standWe don't make our amends, then, they keep their head in the sandIt's a battle cry, a tear in the eye, a suffer insideIt's a voice in the night, callin' out traitor...

Unfortunately for the Prez, Chief Justice and total judiciary branch rookie John Roberts, had to sit out this Supreme decision because he had previously fought on the side of endlessly detaining & torturing the "enemy combatants" in the Hamden case. Thankfully though for fans of endless detention Clarence Thomas was in the hizzo. Thomas wrote with a hint of that ol' dissenting vitriol in his strongly worded opinion in favor of the Guantanamo gulag stylee that :

``to second-guess the determination of the political branches ...is both unprecedented and dangerous."

Meanwhile Al Qaeda's buddies in the ACLU praised the ruling...

``Today's decision is a victory for the rule of law in the United States," said American Civil Liberties Union Executive Director Anthony D. Romero.

``The Supreme Court has made clear that the executive branch does not have a blank cheque in the war on terror and may not run roughshod over the nation's legal system. This decision moves us one step closer to stopping the abuse of power that has become the hallmark of this White House. Now that the Supreme Court has issued its decision, the president should make good on his promise and close Guantanamo."

No doubt these robe wearing ACLU coddling softies on the bench have been reading some sort of commie rag that aids and comforts our enemies like the NY Times.

Kudos to Arizona Congressional Republican Rep JD Hayworth who as demanded NY Times reporters be stripped of their press passes, this according to Congressional Quarterly Today, a daily publication that covers the bleatings of Hill members. Finally a Congressman who has taken the bold step to curb the liberal media's unending war on our government's sacred surveillance programs.

Maybe if they won't stop ruining our country, we can just torture them with this high pitched "mosquito" ringtone...which supposedly can only be heard well by those under twenty. If these folks are over 30 , we'll need to come up wih a new torture...

I'm sure Bill O'Reilly and the conservative pundit crew would like to straighten out the ol' Supreme Court on their latest ruling that weakens the ood ol' US of A's ability to torture and withhold prisoners indefinitely. I hope we as a nation find a way to take out our wrath on anyone who dares report things we don't wanna know about, like say the NY Times, or to stop & spank those that would support unpatriotic activities like that vile donor base that makes up the ACLU...

"The American Civil Liberties Union is Al Qaeda's best friend. There is not a better friend to Al Qaeda in the world than the ACLU, and that's the truth. OK. "

- Bil O'Reilly

I think he's saying that they are like dead to him

Dead To Me - Don't Lie( from the ashes of One Man Army, new release on Fat)

But, Bill being a man of measured reason, who understands the world in a way that few in our media can, is not going down the tempting tantrum laden road of whining and boycott threats...

For example Bill came out and explained to his vast Fox-y audience of patriotic patrons how despite his dissapointment in the NY Times, he's never called for a boycott in ten years of anything, except that one evil nation that built the Statue of Liberty, known as France.

I figured this was because no one in his audience likely reads anyway when they can get the news straight fom Bill.

I guess some have seen a problem with Bill's comment in that he has previously called for his audience to boycott Pepsi, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the International Red Cross, the BBC, Air America Radio, and The New York Times. In fact he was down on the NY Times just days earlier, and that horrendously vile group of lawyers and donors that make up something called the ACLU.

Prez Bush said little more to the media, saying he had received only a "drive-by briefing" on the ruling ...

I ike that... a "Drive By Briefing" ... sort of like how they do it down in South Central...

Sort of clarifies for me Bush's "Boyz in The Hood" mentality...

Meanwhile a new survey of more than 100 national security expert types by Foreign Policy magazine show most believe the admin blew the war on terror. In Particularly we can look at the Iraq war, which has stifled America's credibility abroad, and made the whole country look dumber than a box of rocks.

Asked whether the US was winning the war on terror, 84 per cent of "security experts" said no and 13 per cent answered yes. Asked whether the war in Iraq was helping or hurting the global anti-terrorism campaign, 87 per cent said it was undermining those efforts... an almost equal number said the world was becoming more dangerous for the U.S.

Well despite the naysayers and armchair quarterback know it alls, the war wages on, and I'll be out there celebrating every car bombing in Bagdhad and every insurgent attack as just a sign we are obviously doing the right thing. We aren't in Iraq to be popular... we are there to get that oil...so don't let the small talk distract us from gobbling up that black goo. I love black goo & so do you!

There's always critics, and like the Bush administration is happy to point out, now is not the time to judge, hundreds of years in the future, world history will be rewritten to make everything look a lot more hunky dory ... so there.

We've spent almost 1/2 a trillion dollars on this good ol fashioned war stuff so far since the whole "slamdunk "Iraq - 9/11 tie ins were first uncovered, so we should all get out there and celebrate, celebrate & dance to the music... ain't nuthing but nothing but a party this July 4th...

Only a great country could dump $437 billion on overseas military and foreign aid funding. That includes the latest lil' supplemental spending deal signed into law this month, which provided another $69 billion infusion for for the war effort. I ain't making that up either, those digits come from the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service that shows us well on our way to $500 billion for this WAR, and what's it good for & all that stuff, by early next year.

Now anyone whose ever been through a fantastic 4th of July debacle might know of the infinte array of Sousa marches, the George M. Cohan lyrics etc

Can ya think of a better way to celebrate our country's grand global contributions to the world's marketplace of ideas than with our own special brand of marching band music?

Take this fine example from the US Air Force Band, when we are not raining depleted uranium bombs on your far off village in the name of freedom, we are making beautiful music for our enjoyment back home in the USA. Here's a little Sousa and some George M Cohan to help ya remember why we are so bitchin, and like to fight so darn hard!

Howz about some down home style Americana musica to go with yer upcoming slice of Apple Pie ad nauseum...

Jason Ringenberg was once the frontman for a group of Tennesse based rowdies in the 80's known as Jason & The Scorchers who gave it the ol' major label try, but fell short of the brass ring. Despite never cracking the mainstream, their debut EP Fervor on EMI featured guest sangin' by Michael Stipe that also came with a smoking version of Dylan's Absolutely Sweet Marie. That Dylan strack still kicks plenty ass, and remains on my personal fave list over 20 years later, but even a tour slot opening for ol Bob himself didn't help the Scorchers cross over. Lately I've noticed Ringenberg has appeared on the Yep Roc label, as he's pitched himself as a mature singer/songwriter dude...

Maybe out here in this great land of the free, home of the slaves, you need to hear the tones of Mr. Yerkey, a dde as likely Americana as anyone out here on these wide open parking spaces, with purple mountains majesty etc...

In addition to the ressurection of Mr Yerkey, I was recently notified by the folks at World's Fair label & management group that he is not the only worthy artiste you all might be interested in...

how about Wayne Coyne's nephew Dennis? Yeah, rock nepotism is no longer restricted to spouses and children of the rich & famous, apparently even a nephew can ride the marching band coattails of an indie rawk icon's career...

and from the sound of the band's name, could it be the lil guy is hoping his uncle will crash & burn, leaving Stardeath & The White Dwarfs to usurp the family title and the wacky costume collection? Your guess is as good as mine...

Saturday, June 24, 2006

So apparently some of the "leading" figures in the Blogosphere held a conference called BloggerCon IV this week in SF.

Unlike the typical conferences attended by thousands held at the hotels & convention centers I work at, this event barely had room for all 150 attendees. I go to keg parties and backyard punk shows with better attendance.

Instead of a high profile gathering, these pajamas & politics loving folks were packed in a single room at some innocuous downtown building sponsored in part by some larger corporate entity.

In typical blogerati/web scenester fashion, the event was nerd-tastically insular, and in my humble opinion wasn't super well publicized, and is now over before you heard about it.

Now I don't mean to sound disapointed, but that's wha't I gleaned from reading about it. Maybe these possibly antisocial blogging blowhards are afraid to be around any more blowhards than a small handful...

Seems with millions of "bloggers" out there, likely more than a few dozen might have attended if they had known about it...at least here in the fairly tech sensitive Bay Area.

Well, I guess I wouldn't have made it anyway, having spent more time with better paying real life promotions for Scotch & Ice Cream...

If only I could make as much money off writing and the interwebs as I can handing out ice cream cones and shots of single malt.

Well Dave Winer and his netizens have compiled and posted the blogcentric audio for the sessions. Even though there is no eye contact or power point slides for you, I thought anyone who has a blog and is interested in the issues of the media trolling around today might be interested.

Issues like media paradigm shifts, localization of content, finding potential sponsors, branding and tools that folks are using are particularly interesting to me...

For all you folks and weekend web warriors that are not truly concerned about any o dat ... hey scroll down and grab a few tunes I found laying around that might enetrtain ya more...-->but Bloggers and whatnot may want to check out some of the informative, if a bit tedious conference session downloads

Friday, June 23, 2006

So it's purty hot today, and the swimming pool down the hill doesn't open up to riff raff like me until 5:30... so I'm hiding in the shade while the 'lectricians run around in the hot sun rewiring this old house...

Despite her debut album featuring a Bay Area centric track,Phoebe was discovered in her hometown playing a Martin acoustic in the clubs in Greenwich Village. She had a highly acclaimed debut album on Shelter records in 1974, and was hyped sorta like the Tracy Chapman, Norah Jones or Alicia Keys of her era. She also appeared as a guest singer on LP's for friend's like Dave Grusin, Garland Jeffreys, Gary U.S Bonds and David Sanborn. She's also guested on tributes to Laura Nyro, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, and Muddy Waters.Here's Phoebe kicking out a smooth steel drum enhanced version of a Lennon & McCartney fave ...

She released her first 5 LPs at her career peak in the mid to late 1970's. By 1981 the first greatest hits album and subsequent repackagings started coming out, and she eventually took a somewhat forced recording sabbatical circa 1989 when her major label contract ran dry after 15 years in the biz...

Phoebe was a popular concert draw, and performed at 1977's New York's No Nukes concert in Madison Square Garden event with Jackson Browne and friends and later on in 1992 with Donald Fagen's Rock & Soul Revue along with Boz Scaggs & Michael McDonald etc. She has continued playing gigs including appearances with the Band in 1999, as well as recent club gigs around on the east coast, some with ticket prices as high as $120 a seat.

Here's Phoebe Snow singing an old Jerry Ragovy/Bert Berns track that was first recorded by Erma Franklin in 1967, but has been done most famously by Janis Joplin with Big Brother & The Holding Company, as well as popular versions out there by Sammy Hagar and Faith Hill. The American Idol generation might recognize it from several performances of the track done by contestants over the past few years.

She took her stage name from an old advert campaign from the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad line. The ad campaign featured a female socialite whose tales used rhyme to reach the turn of the century's mobile target demographic.

Here is the 1970's Phoebe on a few more from the era that produced her debut album and her initial popularity, Let The Good Times Roll is a track available on a gold disc CD later produced by Mobile Fidelity Sound Labs...

now I admit, this stuff isn't likely to be yer contemporary heathen net scamps cup of tea... so in honor of the fact that we aim to piss off as many of you rampant clickers that stop by... here's something completely different

from the new disc, here's a revamped track featuring the notorious Kool Keith

After 4 years of mysterious hiatus, the've reappeared ...that's Buckcherry...

Formally with the late DreamWorks records, I guess Speilberg & Geffen sold the imprint & the new overseers & bean counters couldn't afford to support the Hollywood Rock & Roll lifestyle anymore...

So after a break, the band that brought ya the hits "I Love The Cocaine' , and 'For The Movies', have had their latest album debut at #2 on the Independent Album Chart, with distro through ADA. The new single Crazy Bitch is everywhere...

So here are Josh Todd and guitarist Keith Nelson talkin about the release of their album '15' , a disc named after the amount of days spent making it. Apparently they spent some time away from each other, Keith attempted to join the Slash-Weiland prect for aspell, Josh went semi-solo. Then as the money ran out, finally snagged some new members before giving it another go...

Wednesday, June 21, 2006

had a helluva time just getting through last weekend, with a jam packed social calendar that saw me making it to only half the spots I would've liked to have been to.

Did manage to be out and about for North Beach Fair, Mistress Claire's Prom Night @ The Knockout and some other b-day shenanigans & secret shindigs...

Parkerzalooza was a blast, and I must make a very special thanks to Adam and the staff of 12 Galaxies in SF who went out of their way to provide spectacular hospitality for all the assembled musical artists & their guests. Why they kick out such unjustifiable jams for our pal Parker is beyond clear, who I just know couldn't possibly deserve such much love in place of the usual loathing...

The only bummer of the night might have been humble hero Kelley Stoltz not being able to play his full set due to the late hour his group went on, but so much had gone down before hand I don't think anyone could truly go home disappointed.

Highlights included Enablers creating a glorious din, as well as Scott McCaughey of YFF/ Tuatara/Minus 5/R.E.M playing a set including a lovable garagetastic tribute to Stiff Little Fingers (making me feel not so bad that I didn't show up across town at the Irish band's own show to use my languishing list "plus one"). Spiral Stairs of the late great Pavement was also spotted joining local yowza yowza makers Oranger on a version of Devo's Mongoloid that rocked my widdle socks off... nuff said.

Too top it all off, last night I got a chance to catch Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint on their River in Reverse Tour, and it was a truly great & classy show with all the necessary show biz trappings.The Paramount Theater in Oakland is just a fabulous old Art Deco building with way high ceilings & ornate decor that's been magnificienly restored and kept up...

Just being there at The Paramount makes ya feel special, and I guess the fact it costs the better part of 100 bucks to get in the door and sit within seeing distance keeps the regular old riff raff out. The acoustics were terrific, at least where I was up near the front half of the venue, can't speak for the balcony rats y'know.

At first ol' Elvis & The Imposters opened up with a frisky version of Nick Lowe's "What's So Funny About Peace Love & Understanding?", which got the crowd hyped.

Then Mr McManus would occasionally threaten to overwhelm the proceedings and put me to sleep wih his bleating & foreboding balladeering... I got the feeling he liked to hear the sound his own voice quite a wee bit...

But just whenever all hope appeared to be lost, and I would start nodding out, Mr. Allen Toussaint & the Crescent City Horn section featuring the mighty Big Sam on trombone would save the night. Their infectious New 'awlins style grooves just could not be subdued, and would elevate a song out of the park even if ol Elvis was intent on strapping his personality into each and every one that got played.

Don't get me wrong, I appreciate Elvis bringing Toussaint along for the ride, and of course sharing his mysteriously huge fan base, but we surely could've been given a few more peeks into Toussaint's vast repertoire, or at least a couple more of his hits, with his own cool, casual & silky smooth southern vocalizings.

I swore after a bit of glissando on the keys he was gonna bust into "Southern Nights", the song Glen Campbell had a huge late 70's Toussaint hit with.. but it just wasn't to be.

I guess since ol Allen seems a little shy, most folks just don't know who the heck he is...

Last time i saw him out here was in 1997 I think, and he was on a week long stint playing an intimate solo set in a jazz club/sushi bar that was in a converted house/ on the edge of Berkeley to around 50 or so folks a night.

At least with Costello's Army in effect, he gets a big full house to hear hm tickle those ivories...

If yer still in the regions and geographically able to catch these guys on this tour, then do make an effort check it out. Elvis is obviously enthusiastically aglow about sharing the stage with a dignified legend like Allen. Costello also makes a few pointed political commentaries that are certainly not unwarranted considering this collaboration was brought on by chance via the horrible aftermath of Katrina, where Toussaint survived a retchid week trapped at the Superdome.

Onstage, Costello plays many of his old crowd pleasers like Alison & Pump It Up with new flourishes & funkier filled out arrangements by Toussaint. Allen himself plays a Steinway baby grand throughout most of the show in his stylish socks & sandals, occasionally beaming like a proud parent.

I recommend their new album, which not as much fun as the show, is still a fairly good deal as well. I like that it's featuring a second disc, with a well done DVD film showing the recording of the album, that gives you extra insights into their songwriting & recording process that went down with Joe Henry this winter in curfew stricken New Orleans.

from Toussaint's 1997 NYNO records release "Connected"Allen Toussaint - Do The Do

Here's the original version of one Costello got a kick out of singing last night, an oldie that Toussaint wrote and played on back in 1962 for Benny Spellman, who had sang the bass part on Ernie K Doe's "Mother In Law", also composed by Toussaint.

Apologies to all those that called me recently, as my cell phone died a horrible & mysterious death sometime early in the wee hours of Saturday morning, and a new one could not be resurrected until Tuesday...

So, I now have a mobile phone again, but still have none of my old cell's years of phonebook numbers... so call, write or whatever and leave me your digits dudes & dudettes... I already miss ya...

I am working a lot helping distribute 11,000 free ice cream cones a day this week, so I haven't had time to dig out whatever napkins, scraps of paper or whatnot that might have had yer contact info...hit me back ya'll...

I know somebody's reading this...

oh & one mo thing...

If yer looking for something to do in SF this summer, have ya tried The Beat Museum?

Where else can ya see the Jack Kerouac Bobblehead?

or maybe a check Jack wrote for 10 bucks to Nunzie's liquors

?...

The Beat Museum as a joints is a lot like Neal Cassady, in that it's informal, full of interesting gibberish & but not in one place for very long.

Originally set up by Jerry Cimino on the rocky coast twist Big Sur & Monterey, it's done time as a rolling mobile event as well.

Jerry went on tour for a spell with Neal Cassady's son Jack in a aerosteam trailer, and throughout 2004 & 2005 they appeared on numerous school campuses, as well as at clubs and festivals around the US. Jack would read from Kerouac's seminal 1957 work "On The Road", and help educate the assembled by sharing the stories and anecdotes of the characters & the fervent feelings of that time.

Here's Ferlinghetti with Jerry in front of the trailer used when the Beat Museum exhibit went "On The Road".

They are dedicated to keeping the spirit of the Beats alive, which lives not only through the literature, but via the creative continuation of the very arts of storytelling & poetry, as well as a bit of vino drinking I suppose.

Lately Jerry's been looking for a permanent home in the expensive San Francisco real estate zone and hoped to rest his collection of artifacts, posters, manuscripts etc in North Beach, where so much Beat history unraveled. Rents of course have gone up dramtically since the days of readings at defunct spots like The Six Gallery & The Coffee Gallery.

I first spotted it up from Caffe Trieste on Grant Ave in North Beach, temporarily housed inside Live Worms Gallery, where a reading was taking place, wine was flowingand "horse-devours" were stacked as a mixed crowd of young & old, including some obvious aged hippies and beats who listened attentively. Currently they have a spot near The Wharf on the 1000 block of Leavenworth. Looks like in the near future they are planning to set up shop at the old Black Oak Books location at 450 Broadway within easy stumbling distance of numerous bars & strip clubs, and within sight of Ferlinghetti's Beat bastion of books, City Lights.

Jerry is trying raise some dough to do the necessary renovations, and build out.

Jack recounts on how Lionel Hampton , Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie and others played into the foundations of this new frenetic flavor of Jazz...His delivery delves into a journey out of Minton's Playhouse that became the newest & most feared thing in jazz music... on this next soliloquy Jack from The Beat Generation he recounts the SF Scene of Fillmore raised jazz players, describing the music , the dancing, in a very vivid way

Here's their so called single, from the midwestern band I never quite got...( and I became familiar only cuz I was asked to shoot a video of a show once, I know that tape is laying around somewhere...but I never got around to watching it )

and because the weekend is here, and as I mentioned lasterday , I got lotsa shit to do , so here's a tale of Jesus Christ on vacation from my loquacious local pal Fat Mike from his "Never Trust A Hippy" collection.

Johnette Napolitano has been the singer of LA band Concrete Blonde for over 20 years. She's a raspy sorta two pack a day somewhat sultry voiced singer whose epic version of Leonard Cohen's eerie "Everybody Knows" has been definitive in my mind for over a decade. She made a contribution to The Wicker Park soundtrack, and since it's a cover from that pasty Mr.Paltrow's band Cold Play, maybe you whipper snappers will finally pay attention.

Mickey Thomas & his version of Starship will be grinding out a set on Saturday...here's a little number from his past for ya. We won't go back and cover the entire Slick - Kantner era, since Mickey didn't join the band until the late 70's , when they were already quasi-legends. Thomas subplanted Marty Balin ( arguably most famous for taking a punch from Hell's nges onstage at Altamont). Thomas had a moustache & the 70's Bay Area rock look & sound down, making him a suitable competitor against locals Journey, another hippie survivor band formed out of Santana's disgruntled backing group. Thomas' yowling bark is featured on tracks like "Find Your Way Back" & "Jane"

In the early 80's, Paul Kantner left and sued to prevent Grace Slick from using the Jefferson Starship name. (Kantner began fronting his own band, with former Jeffersonian era members called KBC Band aka Kanter/ Balin /Cassidy). Meanwhile The rechristened Starship went platinum, and had more chart success than anything done in the 20 years prior with Kantner. You'd often see Paul drinking coffee at Cafe Trieste in North Beach, or playing gigs in local bars, while Grace & Mickey's Starship was touring the world, "Knee Deep In The Hoopla".

One good way to insure proper airplay for the group, was the marketing of this single in the mid-80's by the RCA label that mixed some big local FM jocks into the tunes. On the LP version & 45 San Francisco's Les Garland was featured. Here's a rarer version with NYC legendary DJ's Cousin Brucie & Dandy Dan.

Eventually after a couple more hits Grace Slick left the band, followed by Mickey Thomas after he go his ass beat by the drummer. Thomas later formed a group called Starship in the early 90's and has continued on the corporate event & county fair circuit, also adding to the set "Fooled Around & Fell In Love", the 1976 hit he had originally sung with Elvin Bishop before joining Starship.

That's 5 ...

I guess I'm done...phew!

so anyhow...

don't look down here...

cuz...

uh...

psst... you know what... I know I said I'm done... but I decided, hey I got a few more minutes before I head out the door to Parkerzalooza

and some folks just annointed me with some bitchin' weekend downloads, so I'm passing on the sonic savings to you...

here's one more track from the a band I mentioned lasterday, who I'll be seeing tonightfrom their Neurot Records album End Note

Howz about now we lighten up & grab a lil Señor Coconut attempting to brighten our day/night realities ala ol Sheik Yer Booty of Bahrain, the ruler Of Neverland In Exile, Mr. Number One Glove, Michael Jackson?

One of the more unique and quirky cats to arise back on my radar is Steve Yerkey, whom lived in the seedy hotel above a recording studio/ performance space I once frequented.

Steve was a mighty force of a peculiar brand of white boy blues & southern songsmithery who would come down and play occasionally and wow us on open mic nights and benefit gigs with his bar hopping pal Chuck Prophet etc.

Lately, it came to my attention that Yerkey, who more or less vanished one day, had a new album out after a 12 year hiatus. So apparently after time spent in the sticks working on relationships & as a receptionist in a youth correctional facility...he's back, and proving that 50 sumpin' year old ne'er do 'ells can still do whatever they put their mind to ne'er doin ...

I'd love to post some stuff from his past, when he looked to be researching the dark side of the spoon & lifestyles of the poor & anonymous. In fact he once recorded a song in that very same studio I mentioned, about a particular lady of the eve that raised the dander of the in house PC patrol & arbiters of acceptable song titles.

I of course, can't find that track at the moment, and since I'm making homemade potato corn chowder, and simultaneously building a menu while burning a compliation Roxy Music , T-Rex and Bowie DVD...I ain't gonna get up and look for it at the moment. You'll have to wait for that out of print gem...

Instead you'll just have to enjoy this one, a casually recorded classic Roy Oribison cover that fits the Yerkey persona perfectly.

Thursday, June 15, 2006

and I'm glad to be back up in the coolness that is Northern California

I may return for an upcoming movie premiere next week... but until then I got things to do

and we hope all is swell with you & if yer in the SFBay Area and out & about... basically there's lotsa stuff going on ya should know about...

so here's some quick updates

Parker'ZaLooza is the event of note in the Mission this Friday. A chance to celebrate the tradgedy that is the continuously unbroken life cycle of one aging perpetual teenager known as Parker ( GibbsMo) Gibbs. The boy is barreling into middle age and attempting to bring us all down with him, and so we must gather and have cupcakes. Yeah Cupcakes... Don't Ask.

Apparently, I yer illustrious edtor, Lil Mike will be amongst the guest bartenders onstage at the 12 Galaxies while bands like Oranger, Scott McCaughey of Young Fresh Fellows, Enablers, Kelley Stoltz etc all get noisy on Friday June 16 at the 3rd annual roving installment of Parker'Z-a-looza... Get There Early For Cupcakes, Stay Late For The Violence !

Also you may or may not know about Mistress Claire's "Prom Nite" at The Knockout this Sat June 17... bring a date or go stag, and be one with the spirit of the Prom like you wish you'd had... Spiked Punch, Bad Theme Music, Funky Formal & Creative Costumery Welcome. No Cover... Optional pre Prom Meals @ The Mission / Valencia Burger King.

( come dressed for excess as yer official prom pix will be provided by photographer extraordinaire/ 500 Club bartender Sudsy & bitchin Stairway To Heaven backdrops by EventMagic)

and oh yeah ,all weekend during the day I'll be selling cool threads & wacky pirate concept bling / rock merch etc at a table on the 1300 block of Grant Ave during the North Beach Festival in front of the RubyDolls ladies boutique

( event features obligatory Mickey "We Built This City" Thomas & Starship appearance on Saturday afternoon ...come see one of my pop's rock & roll golf buddies and have a brew with me on the sidewalk a half block up from Trieste & the Saloon)

Early on Sunday eve, the talented Tom Heyman is doing an early Matinee/Happy Hour show with former Neko Case & Screaming Trees sideman Mark Pickerel who is now fronting his own band. Tom relays that Mark has a record out on Bloodshot that has been getting some good reviews.

Y'all Can Catch Mr. Heyman in action this Sunday June 18th in Albany (or Monday as well in SF)The Ivy Room 858 SAN PABLO AVE @ SOLANO AVE, ALBANY, CA(510) 524-9220Note : EARLY SUNDAY EVENING SHOW: show starts at 5pm

Monday night Tom appears onstage as well at The Makeout Room

oh and Monday June 19 is also one last chance to catch Bee and Flower featuring Dana Schecter ( ex- Angels of Light, Gifthorse ) and her cohorts including Doug Hilsinger ( Waycross , Eagle Tavern etc) before the principle princess in charge and her crew head back to Germany. It's a rare chance to catch this group in their caberet format, while playing with those luverly Hallflowers...

playing with Bee And Flower on Monday are also Laurie & Jennifer Hall with their Mom ...all backed by the solid sonic systems of Doug Hilsinger on guitar, as featured on their CD , "So Nice By The Fire"

In the art realm, can't help but mention last night was the opening of a group show called “Frankenstein Theory and Robotics” curated by Kal Spelletich of The Seemen. The show is open at night, and takes place til July 15th in two galleries in San Francisco, Rx Gallery and the nightclub known as Bar of Contemporary Art (BOCA), which are about 2 1/2 blocks away from each other South of Market.

oh , guess I'll mention on Tues that if ya got a spare seventy five or hundred bucks or so, head to The Paramount in the O to catch a special perfomance from the legendary New Orleans maestro and Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Allen Toussaint (& some bearded wannabee helper named Elvis Costello )...

but if that's outside yer walletability, I'd say yer best low budget bet is to catch our beloved bartending boy about town Mr. Bone Cootes . He's putting together a little combo action & will be rockin' an early set at Makeout Room on Tuesday nightJune 20th followed by local favorites Hangtown,and Sonoma County /Austrailian Outback country tinged sensations the Trailer Park Rangers.

Sunday, June 11, 2006

6 6 06 passed by my world without any real satanic shenanigans, without so much as me even catching Polanski's Rosemary's Baby on the late late show... although I did happen to accidentally see two TV docs recounting the supposed curses on the cast & crews of The Exorcist & Poltergeist film franchises...go figger.

I hear Anton LaVey's daughter was out milking that freaky family franchise with some sort of Satanic legacy appearance at the Cat Club south of Market...

Slayer of course put out a new album, but the one 6-6-06 release that's likely slipped under the cracks was the new Cheap Trick offering... the first studio release by the group in about 3 years... Rockford

The disc is named after their home town just north of Chicago ( never mind that singer Robin Zander now hangs out in Clearwater FL these days). Guitarist Rick Neilsen's folks owned the local music store, and when it came time for a Beatle loving boy to form an illin-noise musical posse... he had the natural advantage.

I gotta give it up for these guys, 30+ years in the rockin' biz... plus they've got more or at least as many original members than all yer fave & even much newer bands, whether that be Wilco, Weezer, Rilo Kiley,Social Distortion, Slayer, R.E.M, No Use For A Name, Cursive or The Vandals.

Ever since their first official record came out in 1976, they've been doing great things non-stop ever since...see 'em live and learn. They still rock, and unlike a lot of road weathered warriors, they aren't even too fat or very bald...

Now truth be told, and yes, I admit , and so do they, that some of the latter 80s & early 90's stuff suffered under the weight of major label stock shlock songwriter submission syndrome...

But by 1997 they lost the Epic label ties, the crappy staff producers, and the Trick regained their roadlegs, (even if they have to open for lesser bands all the time).

I last saw them on a bill squeezed into a mini set after The Detroit Cobras but before the totally unworthy Cake, yet they still held their heads high, and rocked with more dignity than a thousand Stoned Temple Pumpkins or whatever Courtney Love licking junkie losers they've been billed with lately.

I'll probably end up catching the aforementioned Cake this afternoon in Golden Gate Park, and what i wouldn't do to see Cheap Trick instead...here they are on the Conan O'Brien show about a month ago still kicking up dust...

The trick still hold the title as righteous & humble rock n rollers and can do little wrong in my book...

here's a couple from their last studio release, 2004's The Special One

One of the first albums I ever bought was their then new collection "Live At Budokan", recorded in scream-o-rama process with the gatefold & glossy japanese tour booklet... and unlike most records purchased before puberty hit, it unashamedly still gets played to this day. It was this point where they became such a cartoonish sensation that one lovelorn Japanese fan girl shipped herself overseas naked in a box to their Illinois offices. Word was she didn't smell all that good by the time she got there.Here's some more of Cheap Trick's newish stuff... and a few oldies just to remind ya of where they've been...

I put it all here especially for all you new jack peewees who think the strokes, weezer or maroon 5 somehow came up with their fuzzy pop radio friendly lick shticks in a veritable vaccum...From the new CD "Rockford"

These next few songs were recorded in the rock & roll center of the universe, I can't imagine a more rockin spot to be on New Year's Eve, 1979 as we luded & lunged into 1980 than The L.A Forum. The live energy still rips off these recordings from an FM broadcast on KLOS of what must've been one bitchin' super sold out night...

Downed was also featured in it's studio version on the soundtrack of "Over The Edge", the movie where a buncha teenage stoners including Matt Dillon, steal cars, smoke weed & lock their polyester wearing parents in a PTA meeting so the kids can reek havoc all over their planned community...

These two from the Dream Police album, a must have back in the day at the turn of the 80's, and still sounding purty darn good tonight some 25 years later...

Apparently they were mad that Prince, a skinny black man they were nice enough to purchase an album from had included a mention of masturbating in his Purple Rain soundtrack. This pissed off Tipper to no end, and something had to be done. (Ironically, about 10 years later, when Al was vice prez, Dr. Jocylen Elders, the first black female Surgeon General would be asked to resign for mentioning the same "evil" subject. )So in their rigtheous wisdom, Tipper & Al unleashed the PMRC hearings on us, whose highpoint was John "Rocky Mountain High" Denver, Frank "Uncle Meat" Zappa & Dee "We're Not Gonna Take It" Snider being called to testify together in front of Congress .

Indeed... it was so historical, I see that in 2002 VH1 made a TV movie out of it...Dee plays himself.

Mariel Hemingway played Tipper !

Now I don't know about you, but I find the musings of Frank Zappa, Twisted Sister & Prince and Mariel's tush far more entertaining, and for that matter, far more harmless than the blithering of Senators and their wives...

But, instead of focusing on say uh...something important, like uh, hmmm...global climate change, these boomer twits decided to waste plenty taxpayer money and much of their time on this "censorship" non-issue.

All that happenend was that 2 Live Crew begat NWA , and pop music became even more of a cesspool... It's now to the point where if you don't sing about specific bodily parts and/or sex acts you can barely get on the charts.

So ol' Al Bore moved on, and a politician with no national experience from Arkansas took him on as runnning mate.

The PMRC ended up becoming an Albatross around his neck...and Tipper resigned in 1992 as they moved into Blair house, the "veep" residence in DC...

Years roll on, and Al invented the internet, and you might recall his role in Love Story, which he claims was written about him, or even his odd abandonment of his former pal Prez Clinton when the moralists were trying to take 'em down over that sloppy intern dealio.

Note To Democrats : You don't see Dick Cheney trying to censure the corrupt idiotic sitting Prez these daze do ya?

We all remember mannequin man Al and his wicked witch wife & his own wooden presence, and despite being smarter & coming in with a built in advantage on the campaign trail, he was just taking it from Nader on the left and G.W on the right.

Gawd knows what he took in the bedroom....It all seemingly ended badly of course, with Al and his lawyers getting laughed out of the Supreme Court by a robe wearing cabal of jeering jurists, right before he grew a beard and became a semi-recluse, in France. Go figger, maybe he was hanging there with Johnny Depp, but I doubt it...

Well, what's an old dawg gonna do, but learn to rehash old facts, use up his frequent flyer miles and get busy playing with "Keynote" software on his Powerbook...

Sadly, Al is on the road a lot & trying to be the comeback kid...

His new film is out, and if he had demonstrated half as much charisma & thoughtfulness on the campaign trail, his address just might be 1600 Pennsylvania Ave these days.

Gore's film "An Inconvenient Truth" is certainly important , and gives an excellent overview of the perils of global warming. He shows that the issues at stake are not just abstract futuristic theories and predictions, these are irrefutable and frightening facts, backed up with striking footage and images.

I watched as Al pulled a slide that showed how the Burmese restaurant in Alameda I had just eaten at would be under 20 feet of water if just half of a currently dissolving Antarctic Ice Shelf continues to melt at it's current rate.

The facts are in, the world's climate is changing, or as nelly might say "it's Getting Hot in Heeeeeeree". The C02 gas has been rapidly accumulating and Al has known this is not a myth since back when he was in college, and now he is passionate about getting the word out.

He knows his stuff, he makes a compelling presentation, and he connects the dots, and other than the guy eating popcorn way too loudly behind me, it was truly an engrossing and entertaining evening. It's the best disaster film of the year, and ...the bes/worst pasrt is it's not fiction.

I just wonder why Al and pals wasted time and their platform persecuting musicians, when we obviously face far more dangerous threats, like how about our current administration's amazingly asinine policies.

What's even more retarded are the fuming fans of these backwards bastards, who use their blogs to condemn Al and compare him to Hitler's propaganda chief, Joseph Goebbels. Huh?

Ironically I read these insane comments on the same day documents were released confirming the long lived rumor that U.S Intelligence indeed helped hide renowned Nazi leader Adolf Eichmann in Argentina. Do You Like Eich? He was afterall a key architect of the WWII Holocaust... a forward thinking guy...

So anyhow, if ya get a chance , even if yer not an Al fan...check out this important flick.

Below is a link that will connect ya with showtimes in yer area etc...

Godsmack - Going DownP.S In the time it took ya to read this, over 700,000 cubic feet of arctic ice melted, more than 200 tons of carbon dioxide were released into the atmosphere.You can find out your yearly impact on C02 releases via Al's handy online calculatorn

I saw that Dave Chappelle's "lost" final shows for Comedy Central will air starting on July 9th, some 15 months after they were first expected to premiere. Chapelle obviously ain't down with that , but I doubt his fans will stay away.

Despite Al Gore's evidence that it's doomed to drown, NYC is still the place to be, a clipping from a recent edition of the NY Daily News confirms the status of the 5 boroughs as the "Big Crapple..."

A homeless man brutally beat a drinking buddy to death, crushing his head with a cinder block in a cocaine-fueled fury over a seemingly innocent question, police said.

Daniel Callahan, 37, became enraged when William Moschinger, 46, of Selden, asked if he was a cop because of his clean-cut appearance, Suffolk County police homicide Lt. Jack Fitzpatrick said yesterday.

"Mr. Moschinger was struck, fell to the ground, and Mr. Callahan picked up a nearby cinder block and crushed his head," Fitzpatrick said, describing the after-hours fight outside the Cafe Bada Bing in Port Jefferson Station

so in conclusion today, here's a few more tracks, some that Al & Tipper might not approve of ... & like Al says, it's gunna be a hot summer... we can use all the cool we can getfirst up a remake of sorts of Darling Nikki, the song that got Tipper steamed and the PMRC rolling...Lil Nikki - Girl Named Nikki

From the oh so hawt in the hood "My Ghetto Report Card", check out one of this summer's anthems of the Bay...E 40 w/ T-Pain - U and Dat

Tuesday, June 06, 2006

Billy Preston R.I.P

The colorful Houston born keyboardist, who played with a slew of artists including the Beatles, Rolling Stones, Barbra Streisand and Miles Davis has died at age 59. Preston had battled chronic kidney failure and had apparently been in a coma since November.

Considered the 5th Beatle, his credits include appearances on famed LPs like "Let It Be", "Abbey Road" and the "White Album" as well as many of the members future solo discs and tours. He also has played hammond B-3 on some classic Stones discs like "Sticky Fingers", "Goat's Head Soup"and "Exile on Main Street", apparently leaving the Stones after not getting credit for helping write "Melody". He also played on Dylan's "Blood on the Tracks" and Sly and Family Stone's "There's a Riot Goin' On"

Preston, whose career as a solo artist had highs including hits like "Will It Go Round in Circles", "Outa-Space" , "Nothing from Nothing" and "With You , I'm Born Again", also had some lows, like being arrested in LA some years back with a fairly young male prostitute. In 1992, he was ordered incarcerated for nine months at a drug rehab for his no-contest pleas to cocaine and assault charges. Five years later, he was sentenced to three years in prison for violating probation. By 1998, he had plead guilty to insurance fraud and testified against others in a million dollar scam case.

Preston's show biz career began at a young age, playing keys as a ten year old for gospel singer Mahalia Jackson, and by age 12 portrayed the young W.C. Handy biopic St. Louis Blues, a 195 bio pic of the famed composer & music publisher. Preston first encountered the Beatles while on the road in Germany with Little Richard during the early years of their career. He was brought into the Beatle fold in 1969 by George Harrison, and played the part of musical peacemaker as the band's relationships deteriorated. He was with them often during their last recordings, and played their final rooftop show.

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